Story of Italia: The Forgotten Truth
by Harusomi
Summary: Three centuries ago there existed three kingdoms. It was there that a tragic event happened, and over these many years that event has grown to become the Story of Evil. However, upon the discovery of a hidden note in the pages of a book village boy Emil and average thief Kaoru embark on a journey to discover the truth behind the the prince's ordeal.
1. Chapter 1

_There was an old tale that was passed down for many generations about an old kingdom called Italia. There once lived a prince selfish and cruel; and when he ascended to the throne as king he plunged his country into an economic depression. Those who stood in his way were executed on the guillotine, and he eventually became known as the Prince of Evil._

_As the story goes on, it was said he once ordered a massacre on the neighboring country of Ursalia – and event later known as the Ursalian Killing. This event marked the start of the Italian Revolution. Lead by a swordsman in red clothing and a man whose face hid behind a blue mask, the citizens marched forward and took their king prisoner._

_The Prince of Evil was to be executed by the guillotine at 3 'o clock, and as the time drew near he held one visitor though no one knew who; that was a secret to be kept to the very end, it seems. Eventually he was brought to the stand and beheaded by the third gong of the distant church bell. Since his death, the kingdom was then given to the country unaffected by the turmoil – the kingdom of Ispania._

_For many decades people were told of the Prince of Evil and his terrible reign, and for many decades people believed he died there that day on that stand. But now after three whole centuries the true story of the prince's ordeal unfolds…_

_In the hands of two village boys_

_A new story begins…_

…

It started in a small village just off the border coast; there wasn't much to know about the village. It's a very small village after all. However, there lived a peculiar boy in this village. He wasn't much like other village boys; this boy's name is Emil Steilsson, and unlike others his interest lies in old stories and legends than adventures and games.

Day by day people could see him on the steps to his home reading another tale about some man who tried to find the impossible, or a story of a kingdom long forgotten. Many think of the thought a bit drab, but none tried to change the boy's antics. He lived his own life after all, even if it meant him staying in his home filled to the rim with books upon books upon books.

Now Emil has no family to turn to; his parents died when he was a young child, killed by an unknown assailant. His caretaker died by an illness five years before, and now at age sixteen Emil depended on no one, nor did he provide service of his own. The only other one he'd talk to was none other than the old man at the bookshop; even then he only asks him, "Is there anything new?" and the man would shake his head.

One day however, when Emil asked this question, the man rose from his seat and slowly pointed to an old, leather book. "Someone sold to me a story I'd never expected to find," he said, "Surely you've heard of it – the Story of Evil I mean,"

"No, this was the first time you mentioned it to me," Emil answered.

"Such a surprise – the story is an old one, and very true at that," he said as he picked the book off its stand, "The Story of Evil is a popular tale way back then; it was written by one of the palace guards at the time, I think. He wrote the whole ordeal as everyone saw, however the story went through many edits and reproduction so the tale slowly distorted overtime. But this here, boy, is the original tale from beginning to end; I don't know where that salesman found it, but the context and the distinct writing proves that this must be it,"

"It could still just be a fraud," the young teen answered boldly, "It could just be bits of paper and dialogue from the museum in the next town,"

"But it isn't. That there from beginning to end is the original Story of Evil," the elderly male croaked, handing the book to him, "You should know a bit more on Italian dialogue. Let this be a test on your abilities,"

So Emil took it home; the book was indeed old and worn out, but the boy still thought of it as no more than a fraud. _When I get home, I'll prove it's a fake. _He told himself. _What will be written in here would just be random words that can never pass for a good story._

But when he reached home, took his seat at his cluttered desk, and opened the book he was surprised. The entire page was barely legible – the writing itself was made of curves and spaces. _Italian dialogue..._ He realized. _So the man wasn't lying. _With his suspicions laid to rest, he read the first sentence as best as he could. "_In our world there were three kingdoms, for no one had known of uncharted lands. It was in one of these three that there born a selfish prince," _

…

The young teen was intrigued; not once had he come across such a twisted story before. Yes he had read tales of jealousy and revolt, but never had he expected a story to possess such hatred and fear in each word given. Such a tragic story it was, and indeed his favorite as of now; he needs to remember to thank that old geezer.

With a sigh he closed the book. Today had been somewhat of a strain, and one too many people had stopped by his home that time; in reality, one person visited him. The man's name was Kaoru, and as Emil remembered, he was a bit of a dirty thief. He would often sell things that he took from homes and villas in abandoned towns. The man came to their village once every three months, and each time there were new things to find.

When Kaoru came by his home though, Emil wasn't all too pleased; to him the petty thief was rather annoying, even though the man treated him well. "What do want this time, Kaoru?" he said in an annoyed manner, closing the old book.

"I'm just checking on you. There's no wrong in that, is there?" Kaoru asked.

"I just found a new story today and you just came around and disrupted me," the pale boy answered, "What made you want to check on me?"

"I came because of your antisocial status. Every time I stop by this village you're the only one cooped up inside," the older male pointed out, "I see you have one of recent sales. How is it?"

"It's okay, I guess," Emil said with a shrug, "I haven't finished the story yet, and I probably won't be finished until later this evening,"

"Ah, I see then," the salesman rummaged through his load, "Well it's good to see that you haven't changed interests in tales and fables. But if you want to discover more, you need to get outside more,"

"I'm perfectly fine where I am now," he responded, irritated, "What are you doing now? You know I'm not interested in your junk,"

"They're not junk. If they were, then what you'll be holding is also a piece of junk," Kaoru countered, causing the younger teen to blush from embarrassment, "Besides, I'm not going to charge you anything. Consider it a gift from me to you," With that he pulled out a plush animal in the shape of a bird. It was entirely black aside the face and beak; the face was a dirty white color whilst the beak was a mixture of dull reds, yellows and oranges.

He removed a red ribbon from his wrist and tied it around the neck of the bird before holding it out to Emil, who looked at it curiously. "What is it?" he asked, puzzled by its strange appearance.

"I found on one of my travels. There were more of these things in the north – all of which are living and breathing," he said.

"So you brought me a corpse?" Emil asked, suddenly unsure if he should take hold of the bird.

"No, it's a stuffed animal, made the same way as your pillows at home. It's just in the shape of a bird," Kaoru corrected, "Anyway, consider it as a gift, Emil. These aren't easy to get,"

"You still haven't told me what it was," the young teen said.

"Oh right, I forgot to say," He exclaimed, "These are called 'puffins' and they're quite a common sight in the north. I was thinking about snagging a live one, but that didn't turn out too well. But anyways, I got this for you as a way of saying 'explore the world a bit,'"

"Somehow, I think I already knew that," Emil muttered, taking the puffin figure into his arms, "Now if you don't mind may I return to finishing this story?"

"Not at all," Kaoru responded, hauling his things on his back, "I'll be seeing you then, Emil,"

As he walked away, the young teen couldn't help but feel somewhat lonely. It's been true that he had been alone for many years, but every time the man takes his leave he is always reminded of the cruel reality that though the two are good friends that do quarrel from time to time Kaoru will always leave. Even now, as he closed the book he couldn't help but feel a wave of loneliness sweep over him.

Emil gazed at the puffin doll he had placed on a stack of books. It was a rather intriguing creature to him, and in wonder he picked it up once more. The ribbon that was tied around his neck was starting to come loose; the petty thief had a very sloppy knot, much to Emil's displeasure. _If you plan to give someone a gift, at least tie the ribbon properly. _He thought bitterly as he removed the red ribbon and properly tied it around the bird's neck.

He placed the bird back down on the bock stack and returned to the worn out book, but looking at the book he noticed something sticking out from its pages. Emil took hold of the tip, and pulled it out of the pages to reveal a slip of folded paper. _A note?_

Curiously the boy unfolded the slip of paper and read the words written in its blank white sleet. Emil couldn't believe what he had read.

_If you are reading this, then it must be that you've found one of the original versions of our story. This is here to tell you that what you have read is somewhat true. It is true that there was once a prince, and that he was selfish and cruel. It is true that he did a terrible thing to the neighboring country of Ursalia – the Ursalian Killing. Soon after, a revolution indeed followed._

"_But it's not true that the prince was taken and killed the day after. It was never written within the pages of this old story, but what you must know is that the prince never died in this ordeal. He escaped the people and lived his life away from the kingdom he once ruled. Now how he escaped is the secret no one knows but few; in your time, nobody may know. But I wrote this to expose the truth."_

"_If you wish to find out what really happened to the prince, look to the city of Vaksala. In the cellar of the carpenter shop, there lays a small chamber containing the written words of the prince himself; it may not be the best written story, but honestly what would expect from someone like him? But anyways, it is recorded there what really happened to the Prince of Italia."_

"_This is only a fragment of a larger puzzle."_

_._

_._

_._

**Now this story is somewhat of a split – it continues from the Prince of Italia, and also starts a new story of a shut in. Two stories in one, so jackpot for me! Anyways, updates for this should flow smoothly now; come and check every week for an update or two.**

**So now to answer another question; when will I be writing from Lovi's perspective. Judging by what I did…two to four chapters. Sorry, but everyone wanted a sequel, and to put the best experience I went this way. The main purpose of me putting up Prince of Italia was to try to get in character with our favorite Hetalians. This purpose doesn't stop at that story, so it should explain a bit as to why Iceland(Emil) and Kaoru(Hong Kong) are here.**

**Now this doesn't really include you needing to read Prince of Italia, but it's recommended considering how later on it will be a bit confusing. Anyways, I hope you enjoy this! Now please R&R.**


	2. Chapter 2: Soothing Reunions

_This is only a fragment of a larger puzzle_

_..._

"Out of the way, you clumsy idiot," a man bellows, pushing the young teen aside. Emil, surprised be the man's rude nature, yelped as he collided with the hard floor below. With a small groan he picked himself up, dusting off dirt and sand from his clothes. He glared at the rude man before continuing his way down the unknown village path.

Three days ago he had found a message in an old book, and out his own curiosity decided to venture out to this city of "Vaksala" but without much luck. In those three days he found himself lost with no luck of returning to the village he came from. With a week's worth of food and water, an old book with a note and a stuffed plush of a puffin Emil began to worry.

Was the story really flawed? He was told that the story was written from the eyes of one of the palace guard himself, and he himself made sure of it too. But looking at the note again, it too carried a distinct dialect that can only be classified as unknown. The language was Italian, but the written words were of some other country. But if so then where? More so than that, why?

_I'm pushing myself to hard_, he thought with a sigh, _this must've been some sort of prank left by the previous owner. But that can't be right...can it? As far as I know, Kaoru was the one who found it. Maybe he left it as a way to get me out. But this was given to me by that old man, and he knew nothing. So just who wrote this message?_

He stopped for a moment as a thought dawned on him. Where was this found? If I can trace the location I can probably find out who wrote this, and I know just where to start...

"Oi kid!" Emil swiftly turned to face a rather enraged man, "What do you think you're doing?!"

"E-Eh?" Startled, he looked down to see what looked to be the remains of a pot. Turning to his right he sees a stand of pots, and he paled at his realization. "I-I'm sorry! I didn't see where I was going!"

"Oh really?" The man took hold of his collar, lifting the terrified boy off his feet, "Well sorry's don't fix pots, and they most certainly don't bring money!"

"W-what do you want me to do?" Emil asked defiantly, despite his fear of what is to come.

"I'll show you," the man growled through clenched teeth, rearing his arm back. The boy closes his eyes, enduring what was to come. It never came.  
"Excuse me my fine sir," Emil hesitantly opened one eye and saw something he'd never that he'd see. Just my luck, he thought as a young male in red approached the angry salesman with a confident smirk.

"What do you want?" Asked the man, clearly enraged, "Can't you see I'm busy?"

"Exactly why I would lime to intervene," Kaoru replied, "I wish to cut you a deal; release him and I'll pay for his misdeed,"

Emil had never expected that Kaoru would have been in this village. He relieved to see a familiar face, but for it to be the petty thief also somewhat annoyed him. He didn't understand exactly why though.

The salesman thought of it for a moment before lowering Emil to the ground. He still, however, held his grip on the boy's collar. "How much are you going to pay," he asked, suspicious of the thief's antics

"There's no trick, dear sir," Kaoru said in a sickly sweet voice, "I was thinking that if you release my friend, I'll pay twice what that pot costed," He then pulled out a bag of coins and threw it at the man's feet, "I believe it's a fair deal, give or take,"

The man, startled, hesitantly released his grip on the young teen and picked up the bag. Looking inside, Emil noticed a spark go off in that man's head. "It's a deal," he replied, "But I don't want to see that boy near my stand ever again,"

"Deal," Kaoru said and the salesman walked off, money at hand. When the man returned to his stand Emil felt a strong tug and was suddenly pulled into a dark ally. Looking up he was met with Kaoru's stern gaze, and he felt a lump form in his throat.  
"What were you thinking?" Kaoru asked, clearly upset, "When I said you should get out more, I don't mean leave the village to who knows where! You're lucky I was here, otherwise you'll be seeing stars,"  
"I never asked for your help," Emil responded, adverting his gaze, "and I didn't leave by your recommendation. I left out of my own will,"  
"But why did you leave," Kaoru asked, "You hardly left the house before, so why now of all times?"  
"Because of this," Emil said, handing him the note from before, "I found this inside the old book you sold to that old man. It's says that the story written isn't the true story, and that I can find the real story in a place called Vaksala,"  
The young thief took a moment to read through the note, and afterwards handed the note back to Emil. "So you're just going to leave without knowing anything?" he asked. The younger didn't reply. "What were you planning to do now? You can't keep guessing,"  
"I was planning to find you, but it went the other way around," Emil muttered, "All I'm planning to do now is ask you where you found the book,"  
Kaoru blinked in surprise, "Why?"  
"I don't know if this note is the truth or a prank of the previous owner," Emil replied, "if anything I could be wandering around in circles because it's just a prank. However, the writing and dialect speak otherwise so it isn't likely but-"  
"Calm down, Emil," the elder replied, pinning the boy to the wall, "Why not just ask me to take you to Vaksala? If the note was right, there should be a small chamber hidden in the basement of a carpenter shop. If it wasn't wrong, you can head straight home, no big deal,"  
"So you know where Vaksala is," Emil asked, earning a glare from Kaoru.  
"I'm a traveling thief. I should know my way around these parts," he said, "Also, I'll tell you now that that note isn't fake,"  
"What makes you say that?" Emil asked, surprised.  
"There's real based off of evidence, and then there's real based off intuition," Kaoru replied, "If there was only one witness and no evidence, it doesn't exactly mean their lying,"  
The thief then walked off on his own, leaving a somewhat confused Emil trailing behind.

_..._

Two days.

That was the time it took for them to reach the village of Sigfinnur. By then Emil was ready to collapse from fatigue, and Kaoru whom worried for his health decided that they would rest here for the day. The duo paid for a room at a nearby inn, and Emil was more than relieved to finally have a soft, clean bed to sleep on that night.  
"You really aren't suited for traveling, you know that?" Kaoru said with a chuckle, earning a glare from Emil.

"I just wanted to know the full story, that's all," he muttered, turning on his side.  
"Even if that note was a prank?" the thief asked, raising a brow. Emil didn't respond, causing him to laugh, "What happened to you thinking it was nothing but a hoax?"  
"W-well," the boy stuttered, unsure of how to respond, "I didn't exactly think it was a hoax until my time in the last village."

"That was because you had no idea where to go," Kaoru explained, "Because you had no idea where this 'Vaksala' was you thought it might've been a figment of imagination, like all the stories you've read before,"  
The boy didn't respond; he didn't know how to. The room was engulfed in silence before Kaoru spoke up again.

"I was wondering," he said in a low voice, "Why did you bring that puffin with you?"  
The boy looked at him confused, "What do you mean?"  
"I don't see why you need to bring that with you. It would get dirty," he replied with a smirk, "So why did you bring it?"

Almost instantly Emil turned a bright shade of red and threw the covers over him, hiding his blush. "I-it's none of your business!" He stated simply, causing the thief to laugh once more.

"I see," he said between breaths, "Though you wanted to find the 'full story', you still needed that nudge to get you out of the house and into the world. How lucky of me that I encouraged you to leave,"

"You're so annoying," Emil bellowed.

"You're just as hopeless," Kaoru said with a small smile on his face.  
The room was then met with silence, until the thief heard the faint puff from his companion. He turned to see his companion peeping from under the covers, a faint blush planted on his face.

"You can't sleep?" he asked only for the latter to advert his eyes. The elder let out a sigh, "Would you sleep if I sang a lullaby?"

"I doubt you know any," the boy murmured softly. Despite the hurtful words Kaoru merely smiled.

"You'd be surprised," he said softly. With a deep breath, he started humming note after note in a soothing harmony. Emil looked at the thief, mystified. The tune began soft and gentle, but slowly sped up, until the words came.

"_Smiling  
Spinning in circles  
Holding hands  
The world is a blur  
Except when you're standing"_

Emil was stunned; Kaoru sang in a soft, gentle voice yet despite the seemingly fragile tone he could sense a bout of strength. It was truly enchanting, and Emil couldn't but be lulled to sleep by the young thief's song. It annoyed him somewhat that it was the same annoying thief that put him to sleep, yet despite his annoyance he was indeed grateful.

When he had finished his song, he turned to see Emil fast asleep. With a smirk he dove under his own covers and began to think. Why is this story so important to Emil? He knew the young teen well, and he knew it wasn't easy to get him interested in a farfetched idea. It surprised him even more that the idea made Emil leave his hometown for once; a feat he never expected to be true.

_Just what is it about that story that has Emil on edge?_

_..._

Deep in the city of Vaksala, in an old carpenter shop, a young male looked out his window and up into the starry sky. In his right hand was an old, rusted key and in his left was an old parchment.

"It's only a matter of time," he whispered silently, "until the truth comes to light..."

**Gomenasai for the long haitus. I was stuck on writer's block, and I had to rewrite this chapter 6-7 times until now. Even now I'm not satisfied, and if it doesn't met your expectations I promise to try harder next time.  
I'm just here to say I'm not giving up on this story. Don't worry, I'll finish eventually. Just give me time to do so.  
The lulluby Kaoru sang is actually Hoppípola by Sigur Ros wich gave me inspiration for this chapter (thank god!)  
NEWS: I'm thinking of making a manga for this parody series (hetalia/vocaloid doujin series) I'll either do it alongside or after I finish, but I want to hear you 'guys thoughts first.**


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